Personal Branding for the highly sensitive / introverted people – yes you can!

Today I received an e-mail from somebody I have known for a very long time but somehow we just lost touch. You know how that happens. I’m not the kind of person who easily gives up on people, and when I feel there is a real connection, you will not easily get rid of me 🙂

That’s also the reason why I was able to build my network steadily. I keep in touch, and so should you. In one way or another. Online or offline. Preferably both!

Anyway, he wrote me a small message: “Please Bunnens; leave us introverts alone. Not everybody wants to be an extravert!”.

That made me think – why is he saying this? Probably because I feel (and I don’t stop saying :-)) it is important for all of us freelancers, the introverts and extraverts, to get out there, to become visible.

It’s my mission to help all freelancers to get noticed by their potential clients in order to stand out from the competition and to become more successful in business and private life.

Does that mean it’s only the extraverts who will be able to build their Personal Brand? Hell no!

Me, myself, I have always been an introverted, shy little girl. I felt ugly, so I sure didn’t want to stand out. My parents told me to be quiet and work hard and that would be the key to a happy life.

Well, sorry guys, but that is just not good enough. If you want to be a successful business owner, you just have to build a solid reputation, deliver good service to your clients, and show what you’re worth.

Does that mean you should start shouting how good you are? NO! Show, don’t tell!

Does that mean you should go to every networking event possible? NO! choose wisely. And anyway, in today’s digital world, you can also build an ONLINE Personal Brand – meaning you can sit behind your PC while sharing your content with your target audience. You don’t even have to see your client face-to-face if you don’t want. I’m more a face2face person, but hey, it’s OK not to be.

Does that mean that you, the highly sensitive introverted person, will not be able to build a successful Personal Brand? NO! One of my clients, Ann Baeke, proves you wrong when you think that! And I have many great clients like her!

Does it mean you should get out of your comfort zone once in a while? YES! You don’t want to know how many times I left my comfort zone this last year! It’s been a rollercoaster since I’ve started YouBrandBuilder.be

Does it mean it is not scary? NO! it is scary to become visible, it is scary to leave your comfort zone, it is scary to build a business

Is it worth it? YES! 🙂

To end some things to keep in mind when you are building your business and thinking about building your Personal Brand:

Personal Branding is not about you – it’s about your client

Choose the ways to position yourself wisely (in sync with you and your client)

Show, don’t tell

Life begins where your comfort zone ends

Build a solid reputation – Under-promise, over-deliver

“Be yourself, everyone else is already taken” – Oscar Wilde

Whether you are an introvert or an extravert, you are beautiful just the way you are!